Jamie Francis/The OregonianIn this photo from October of 2006, Jacob Howlett with O'Neill Electirc of Portland is seen installing one of the transmitters that were part of Portland's short-lived free Wi-Fi network. This one was at Northeast Glisan Street and 24th Avenue.

MetroFi Inc. has confirmed that it plans to turn off Portland's free Wi-Fi network at the end of the month, putting an end to the troubled, city-backed experiment in providing universal Web access.

The California company notified the city of its decision Wednesday, according to Portland officials. It's no surprise: MetroFi said last month that its ad-supported network wasn't generating enough revenue to stay afloat. It set a deadline for the end of June to beginning taking it down unless a last-minute buyer emerged.

Private investors rescued a similar project in Philadelphia this week, acquiring it from EarthLink Inc., but few observers expected a bailout for Portland's technically troubled network.

MetroFi told city officials it plans to turn off its Portland network on June 30, and begin taking antennas down the next day. The company said it expects to have all work done by July 30.

MetroFi launched its network in December 2006, commissioned by the city to provide free, wireless Internet coverage for 95 percent of Portland. The city spent more than $250,000 studying the project and overseeing its launch, but MetroFi and its investors paid the $2 million cost of building the partially completed network themselves.

Low-powered Wi-Fi antennas are relatively inexpensive to operate, but Wi-Fi lacked the signal strength to provide truly comprehensive coverage in Portland. Many would-be users found themselves unable to connect, and few users could access the signal indoors without a $100 signal booster.

MetroFi erected about 600 cylindrical Wi-Fi antennas on streetlights and utility poles around Portland, concentrating coverage downtown and in inner Southeast and St. Johns.

The company's contract with Portland required MetroFi to establish a reserve fund to ensure it would have the resources to take those antennas down if the project failed. But last month, when MetroFi announced plans to turn off Portland's netwok, the company said it had the resources to remove the equipment without tapping into the reserve.